


Boomerang

by Brynn_writes



Category: Criminal Minds (US TV)
Genre: Angst, Canon-Typical Violence, Case Fic, F/F, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, How Do I Tag, I Don't Even Know, Unsub | Unknown Subject, for the cause, this is war
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-23
Updated: 2021-03-02
Packaged: 2021-03-11 23:28:12
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 4,691
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29625651
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Brynn_writes/pseuds/Brynn_writes
Summary: Boomerang: (of a plan or action) returns to the originator, often with negative consequences.After years of cases, Emily Prentiss and Jennifer "JJ" Jareau are close friends. When the case of the "Pittsburgh Slasher" takes the team to JJ's hometown, to track an unsub whose type could be described in one word, "Emily."After finding the identity of the dangerous murderer, JJ and Emily are taken as hostages. Will the near-death experience bring the "best friends" together for good, or will it tear their friendship apart? One thing's for sure: JJ's plan backfired.
Relationships: Jennifer "JJ" Jareau/Emily Prentiss
Comments: 1
Kudos: 43





	1. Case

**Author's Note:**

  * For [vhsrights](https://archiveofourown.org/users/vhsrights/gifts).



It was midnight at the FBI field office, and JJ was still working. Another too-late night, pouring over too many cases and filing away requests. Small town one-offs went away first, then she matched the solved cases in her email to their files, and away they went. Paperwork was meditative at times when she didn't open the files. Leftover was cases JJ had to decide between, analyzing the immediate danger of the public in each case. Cream folders filled with terror covered her desk, awaiting her attention, until she found an especially thick file in the middle of her stack. Over ten girls, killed slowly and dumped like trash in Pittsburgh. JJ was going home. 

She stood with a groan, limbs heavy as she began to make her copies. One for each agent, and a digitized version for their resident hacker, Penelope Garcia. Placing each set of documents in its own file, JJ headed to the conference room to set up. Files in front of every chair, pictures, and computer at the ready, she called in the team. 

"Hotch? We've got one, local media's already named him the Pittsburgh Slasher. Upwards of ten victims." JJ sighed, glancing at the clock. It was almost five in the morning, and she hadn't gone home yet. Again.

"I'll handle Morgan and Rossi. You got Prentiss and Reid?" 

"Yes, sir." JJ sat down, relaxing for just a moment.

"See you in ten." Hotch hung up, and JJ was stuck talking Emily out of bed. The phone rang, sending her to voicemail, and then she tried the home phone. _Lazy woman,_ JJ thought, a slight smile on her lips. 

"JJ, I swear to God," Emily mumbled. "Stop accepting requests in the middle of the night."

"Sorry, Em. I'll make your coffee." JJ attempted, earning a quiet grunt.

"I'll grab some on the way. Your usual?" Emily sighed. She couldn't stay mad for long.

"Yes, large please." JJ agreed enthusiastically. "I'll pay you back."

"No, you won't. Not allowed. You'll buy at an acceptable time in the morning. You haven't gone home yet, have you? Do you even have clean clothes in your go-bag?" Emily teased.

"Hotels do laundry, sweetheart. See you in ten, I gotta call Reid." JJ smiled. Emily was her favorite person.Even after being called second, Emily arrived last. She carried coffee for everyone, though, which gave her an automatic free pass when she handed them out. Hotch, Morgan, and Rossi's black coffee, JJ's with cream and sugar, Reid's hot chocolate, Penelope's too-long order, and her own. The room lit up at the entrance of coffee, the case becoming more manageable.

"I could kiss you." JJ groaned, taking her coffee and holding onto it like a lifeline. 

"I'd pay to see that." Morgan laughed. "Never gonna happen."

"If we weren't at work, you know she would've." JJ chimed, setting down her cup. "Don't challenge her." Emily nodded, kissing JJ's cheek with a smirk.

"See, that was technically a kiss. Where's my money?" Emily asked. Rossi looked amused, Spencer was giggling adorably. Hotch cleared his throat loudly, and JJ began her presentation.

* * *

"Jayje, go to sleep." Emily insisted after JJ yawned for the tenth time in five minutes. JJ shook her head, drawing a card. They were playing garbage, a game Reid learned from his mom (who learned it in the hospital).

"I'm close to winning." She insisted. JJ was right, she only needed one card and she beat everyone, even Spencer.

"After that, you sleep." Emily nodded, patting JJ's knee. 

"Emily, just draw." JJ teased. 

"Fine, but if Spencer wins, I'm never playing a game with him again," Emily muttered. 

"Statistically, the odds of JJ winning are much higher," Spencer admitted. 

He was right, too, as always. JJ won, and Emily convinced her to sleep for the rest of the plane ride. The blonde wrapped herself in a fluffy blanket and laid across the couch, her head on a pillow in Emily's lap. The brunette ran her fingers mindlessly through blonde hair, closing her own eyes and falling asleep, too.


	2. Distance

After a long day and a sleepless night, the team met back at the police department to continue their work. They'd given a preliminary profile, and they had a list a mile long of men who fit, thanks to Garcia, but that was it. There was no way to narrow it down or evidence to analyze. There was nothing. JJ sat in the room, attempting to focus long enough to contribute anything, but there was nothing. The sheriff came in to check on them, antsy for anything more, but they didn't have anything to give.

"JJ, why don't you go grab us some lunch?" Hotch suggested.

"Yeah, write down what you want and I'll go." JJ agreed quietly.

"I'll come with you," Emily announced, placing a gentle hand on JJ's shoulder.

"Okay. We good?" JJ asked, reaching for the list, and off they went. The black SUV wove its way through traffic, and JJ didn't say a word.

"So have you told your mom that you're home?" Emily asked, desperate to break the silence.

"No, I thought about calling her, but she'll want to visit, and I just...not this time." JJ shook her head, her eyes never leaving the road.

"What do you mean?" Emily asked. As far as she could tell, JJ and her mother were close. 

"I love her, but she and I just...don't see eye-to-eye on things." JJ sighed.

"Things?"

"Anything. My job is too violent, I'm too single, and my sexuality isn't straight enough."

"Well, I could fix the single part, but that's probably not the way she wants." Emily joked, earning a little smile from the blonde. There it was.

"No, definitely wouldn't make her happy." JJ giggled. 

"Is that why you've been so weird?" Emily asked.

"Weird?"

"Jayje, we're profilers. You've been closed off, quiet, standoffish. Something's wrong." 

"It's not that, my mother and I have always been...weird, but this case, it's one of our worse ones." JJ managed.

"It's bad, but honey, we've seen worse." Emily placed a gentle hand on JJ's knee and felt the blonde tense. "What's wrong, JJ?"

"I'm in my hometown with my new family and someone I have a huge crush on, and my mother who doesn't like anything about who I am, and the victims in this case are you. Every crime scene photo, every dead girl in the morgue reminds me how much I care about you, and I hate it. I hate that this screws with me so much, but it does." JJ snapped. 

"You hate that it screws with me, or you hate that you care?" Emily asked. 

"Em, I hate that I see you in dead girls. I love you, you know that." JJ melted, taking Emily's hand in hers. 

"I love you. too. Now, about this crush." Emily smirked. 

"No, Em!" JJ groaned, laughing as Emily seemed even more interested. 

"You're not straight, so is it a girl?" 

"We're not doing this."

"Oh, we are." Emily laughed.

* * *

After grabbing lunch and grilling JJ (very unsuccessfully), Emily rejoined the team to work on the profile, JJ by her side. Hours of working got them closer and closer, but they still didn't have any suspects. Finally, they decided to make a statement to the press, and JJ prepped in seconds. 

"The man we're looking for is in his late twenties to early thirties. He's white and approximately six feet tall. We believe this man is very sociable, charming, even, but oversteps boundaries and objectifies women. This man is a typical alpha male and is killing women who represent his mother, who we believe abused him as a child. If you have any information or questions, please contact the police station, and we urge young women to be especially cautious. Thank you." JJ stepped down from her stand and back into the police department, ending up almost immediately in Emily's arms. 

"You should be expecting a call," Emily mumbled, rubbing JJ's back gently.

"That's why I'm hugging you." JJ buried her face in Emily's neck, just as her phone rang. "SSA Jareau."

"Jennifer, you didn't say you were in town." The familiar voice of Sandy Jareau came through her phone.

"I haven't had much time, Mom, I'm working." JJ shook her head, leaning back into Emily's embrace. 

"With Emily?"

"Yes, why?"

"You talk about her a lot."

"Mom, I'm working. I gotta go." JJ frowned.

"Please, don't hang up. Come for dinner, bring her with you." Sandy insisted.

"I can't, we're busy."

"You have to eat." 

"We usually have takeout while we work." JJ lied. They always stopped for dinner, to clear their minds and come back with fresh eyes.

"Well, I can bring you all some homemade food. Please, let me see you."

"Well, they'd kill me if I turned down a home-cooked meal." JJ sighed.

"Good. I'd like to meet them. I'll swing by the station at six, okay?" Sandy asked.

"We'll see you. Bye, Mom." JJ smiled, and Emily did, too. 

"JJ scored us a home-cooked meal," Emily announced.

"Is Sandy coming?" Reid asked.

"Yeah, at six. She's probably coming to see Emily, though, not me." JJ teased.

"Why's that?" Emily asked, her cute smile turned to a confused little frown.

"She's heard some things, she wants to meet my best friend." JJ shrugged. Morgan chuckled, continuing to write.


	3. Mom

JJ read her final call log from the hotline, this one describing a large, African-American man. It was like no one listened to the press release. The words "call" and "hotline" were a direct invitation for idiots to voice their concerns. Prank calls, false reports, and creeps filled the call logs. JJ set down her pen and rolling her eyes. She flipped over all of the boards, gathering scattered crime scene photos and files to pile up neatly for her mother's visit. Her entire body groaned at the movement, sore from chasing an unsub with Emily the day before they arrived in Pittsburgh. She'd forgotten about that, how tired she was from not sleeping the night before, her nap on the jet being only thirty minutes long. JJ made her way into the break room to pour herself a much-needed cup of coffee. Emily was there, leaning against the counter and drinking out of her own mug.

"Hey, Jayje," Emily murmured, setting down her mug to pour one for JJ.

"Hi," JJ mumbled. She could feel her eyes closing and her body crying out for sleep. She was not excited.

"It won't be that bad." Emily smiled, pouring in the cream and sugar for JJ, then handing over the cup, exactly the way JJ liked it.

"I'll remind you that last time I saw her, she told me I shouldn't be doing a man's job three times and asked when I was getting married four." JJ took a sip of the coffee with a sigh.

"If it's that bad, we'll have a movie night and I'll get you ice cream." Emily smiled softly. Anything for her.

"You're my favorite." JJ smiled as Emily took her hand, walking with her to the conference room, where Sandy was already waiting.

"Oh, Jenny, there you are! I just met David. Come, eat." Sandy waved them into the room, and JJ tensed, her grip on Emily's hand tightened. 

"Jenny?" Emily teased, earning a small smile.

"Watch it, Prentiss," JJ warned, dropping Emily's hand to sit down.

  
"I brought enough to feed an army." Sandy smiled, uncovering several large containers of food.

"Spence is still a growing boy with a big appetite," Emily smirked.

"Ha, ha. Funny." Spencer deadpanned, shoving Emily on his way past her.

  
"Yes, it was." Emily plopped down in the seat next to JJ's, two feet settling in her lap. Today was a pants day for JJ, and she always put her feet in Emily's lap just to mess with her. 

"Kids, behave, or I'll chain you to your desks with paperwork." JJ shot Emily a warning glare, which earned a series of giggles and a 'yes, Mom.' Everyone settled in for dinner, casual stories passed around as they ate. Lighthearted and casual, JJ was glad her friends were there. 

"So, Emily, where are you from?" Sandy asked.

"I was born in DC, but I've lived everywhere, Russia, Spain, Italy, France. I even lived in the Middle East for a while. My mother's an ambassador, so Dad and I followed her around." Emily explained, swatting JJ's hand away from her plate. "Eat your own!"

"Yours is better!" JJ's cute grin made Emily laugh, a smile growing on her own lips.

"It's the exact same thing!" 

"I don't have any pasta." JJ pointed out. Emily rolled her eyes.

"Fine, here." She relented, holding out her fork for JJ to take a bite. 

"Yes! I tell you too often, but you're my favorite." JJ smiled, Emily feeding her a forkful of pasta.

"Don't tell her that, she has an ego the size of China." Derek scoffed.

"Russia, actually." Reid piped up. "It's bigger at approximately 6.602 million square miles. China is only 3.702 million square miles."

"Reid, I have no ego comments for you. Morgan, you flirt with anything that moves. Mr. 'Babygirl.'" Emily deepened her voice and imitated Derek answering the phone. "'Look up the words 'sexy' and 'genius' in that computer of yours.' 'Gimme some sugar.'"

"She's right, you know," JJ smirked.

"Why don't I get an ego comment? I talk about my memory and IQ, and I practically always spout statistics." Reid frowned.

"You don't reference your intelligence unless someone asks and your statistics are something you like to talk about. Reid, you're a sweetheart." JJ smiled softly.

"Damn. Diss me like that, Jayje." Derek feigned pain, leaning back in his chair like he'd been shot. 

"I'll be right back." Emily patted JJ's knee gently, asking her silently to put her legs down. JJ did, pouting when Emily stood. "Oh, stop, you whiner." JJ's eyes followed Emily out of the room (particularly her ass, the way she swayed her hips as she walked). Sandy leaned over, closer to JJ.

"Jenny, darling, are you two together?" She asked. Morgan, who was passing by, snickered.

"Emily and - We aren't - No! We're not. Emily and I are friends. Just friends." JJ stuttered, somehow earning even more laughter.

"For now," Spencer added, which caused an insanely embarrassed JJ to cover her face.

"Spence!" She squeaked, just as Emily entered the room. 

"Seriously, two minutes?" Emily sighed, dropping back into her chair. 

"Wasn't me this time!" Derek announced, raising his arms over his head in innocence.

"Sandy thought you -" Spencer pipes up, cut off by a sharp kick in the shin.

"We're gonna forget that happened, or I'll multiply all that paperwork on your desks by ten." JJ's voice was sharp, threatening, and oh, God, she was hot. Emily's eyes widened, squirming in her seat.

"Jeez, Jayje, that bad?" Emily asked.

"Awkward. Yes. You don't want to know." JJ nodded, taking a huge gulp of coffee to hopefully calm her nerves. "Let's talk about something else, please. Where's Elizabeth?"

"Mother is in France. She and Dad are on an anniversary trip, and she keeps sending me pictures of French pastries and wine as punishment for skipping out." Emily frowned. 

"You skipped out on Paris, didn't you? Em, I told you to go! You know she's trying." JJ sighed. 

"Meh. I can already hear our entire conversation. Our only conversation. 'Ma bibiche, you're so thin! Are you eating? Is the FBI overworking you? You look tired. Are you practicing your languages? I doubt you have much time for Russian and Arabic with all that work.'" Emily slipped easily into her 'mother' voice, proper and almost monotone. "Then I'd tell her I'm eating, I just exercise a lot. The FBI isn't overworking me, I overwork myself, and I speak Russian at Reid, we read books in other languages together. Same cycle. Then Dad takes over and buffers the whole time and it sucks." 

"Em, you could've at least visited Belle." JJ attempted.

"Visit my ex in Paris? C'mon, JJ. I'd rather be here with you and cursing in French where no one understands me." Emily's sly smirk made JJ's blush creep back up her cheeks, suddenly all too aware of how gay they seemed.

"French, Russian, and Arabic? That's impressive." Sandy smiled.

"There's more." JJ rolled her eyes. Emily's linguistic skills were so annoying. And hot, which was the really annoying part.

"Yep, Spanish, Italian, and Greek." Emily nodded. 

"I like French the most, though. We don't have enough French unsubs." JJ's joke fell flat, except for the cute smile on Emily's face.

"Je ne parle pas beaucoup, mais j'aime la façon dont ça vous fait sourire. Votre sourire est ma chose préférée. Quand tu ris, tout ce que je veux, c'est t'embrasser. Tu es la plus belle personne que j'ai jamais vue, et j'aimerais juste que tu ressentes comme moi. Je suis amoureux de toi depuis le jour où je t'ai rencontré." Emily's face was so...sincere. She was beautiful, and JJ was dying. Emily's perfect accent made a part of JJ's mind wonder what else she could do with that mouth. No! That's not how she should be thinking about Emily. She didn't even notice she was gone to the world, melted into the seat.

"You good?" Emily waved a hand in front of JJ's eyes, and the blonde shook it off.

"Fine, yeah." JJ lied. 

"Can you teach me how to curse in six different languages?" Derek called.

"Merde, mierda, allaena, gamó, fanculo, Blyad'. French, Spanish, Arabic, Greek, Italian, and Russian. No repeats." Emily replied.

"Emily!" JJ groaned. 

"He asked!" The brunette protested.

"Alright, we should head back to the hotel soon. We have no leads, and we need fresh eyes." Hotch's announcement interrupted Emily's scolding. "And Emily, again?" 

"You know I do it because it makes everyone mad, Hotch. I was trained to be in politics, and that's a petty field." Emily smirked. 

"I know, but I'll make it an official BAU rule. No teaching Derek Morgan how to curse." Hotch allowed the slightest hint of a smile to tug at his lips.

"Problem child," Rossi muttered, shaking his head.

"Thanks, Dad." Emily rolled her eyes. She turned to JJ to take her hand and offer her the keys, but the blonde was gone.


	4. In Sleep

JJ rode back to the hotel in Morgan and Reid's van, some part of her determined to prove she and Emily weren't attached at the hip. She threw on an oversized tee-shirt and shorts, pacing up and down her room. She and Emily weren't that affectionate. No, that was absurd. She was in love with Emily, yes, but they weren't Quantico's Queer Couple of the Month. She expected Emily to knock on the door, invite her over for a movie like always, but she never did. Instead, JJ fell asleep at 1:45 AM, Emily clouding her mind.

* * *

_Another long day found JJ heading into the break room, searching for coffee, like always. A certain brunette agent leaned against the counter, sipping from a mug. A soft smile tugged at JJ's lips as Emily set down the mug._

_"You, too?" JJ asked. She busied herself at the counter, pouring her coffee._

_"Yeah. This guy leaves us nothing." Emily took a deep breath, shaking her head._

_"That's your tell. What's wrong?" JJ asked knowingly._

_"Just worried about you. You're distancing yourself. Spence told me Sandy thought we were together. You got all defensive." Emily explained._

_"Em, I -"_

_"Don't 'Em' me. I'm not stupid, Jayje. Why didn't you just tell me?" Emily placed her hands on JJ's shoulders._

_"I couldn't. How could I? You're my best friend and losing you would hurt more than never getting a chance. I'd rather wonder than know you didn't want me. I can stay your friend and hold your hand, hug you, love you like this, but I can't... I know I don't have a chance." JJ felt her stomach tie itself into a knot, nerves taking hold of every inch of her body. She glanced down at her fidgeting hands, urging them to still themselves._

_"Jen, look at me." Emily placed a finger underneath JJ's chin, lifting it gently to meet blazing blue eyes. "You should've told me."_

_"Em, I couldn't, I'm sorry." JJ felt a tear slip down her cheek, Emily's thumb moving to wipe it away._

_Both of Emily's hands cupped JJ's cheeks, her eyes studying the broken woman before her. Emily let out a soft breath. How could she be this oblivious? Brown eyes settled on JJ's lips, neither woman daring to speak. Emily leaned closer, eyes meeting JJ's as if to ask permission. Blue eyes fluttered shut, and Emily connected their lips in a kiss that made the world spin around them, JJ's hands finding Emily's waist and pulling her in to ground herself. Emily's hands found their way from pale cheeks into sandy hair, her teeth grazing JJ's bottom lip, which earned a small gasp._

_"We should stop." JJ pulled away, for a second, and then lips were on hers again, and she wasn't going to break the kiss again, deprive herself of the woman she'd wanted for five years, especially when the brunette used the moment of shock to her advantage, slipping her tongue into JJ's mouth. Emily's hips pushed her back against the counter, and God, this couldn't be real. In a second, Emily had pulled back, practically tearing off JJ's shirt. They were desperate for more - more skin, more touching, more of each other. Emily's lips trailed down JJ's jaw, her neck, stopping to suck purple marks into pale skin, delighting in the beautiful contrast of colors before moving on. "God, Em." JJ breathed out. "Emily, take off your damn shirt." JJ shoved at the brunette's shoulders, and Emily obliged._

_"Better?" Emily's lips curved into a cocky little smirk that was soon gone, replaced by JJ's lips on hers._

_"Mhmm, better," JJ mumbled. Emily pressed a thigh between JJ's legs, hands cupping breasts over the nude bra JJ wore. "Emily, don't tease." JJ's head rolled back, gripping Emily's shoulders like a lifeline. Her words, meant as a warning, came out as a plea. "Please, Em." Almost a whisper, that was enough. Emily placed JJ on the counter, lifting her easily. Fingers crept underneath her skirt, gripping her thighs as she was pulled into another searing kiss._

_"Jayje." Emily pulled back, breathing heavily. "Jayje, help." Blood trickled down Emily's chin, out of the corner of her mouth._

_"Emily? What's going on?" JJ grabbed a handful of napkins, wiping away the deep red that stained perfect porcelain skin. "Em, you're bleeding."_

_"No shit." Even bleeding, she was sarcastic._

_"Fuck, Em, what happened?" Blood dripped from Emily's nose, all of the napkins were soaked through. "Emily, what the fuck?" Trembling hands reached for more napkins, paper towels, anything._

_"Jen, help." Emily's voice cracked - it never did that - as Emily's hands wrapped around JJ's wrists._

_"It's gonna be okay, Em, you're fine." JJ insisted, placing a soft kiss on Emily's forehead. "You're gonna be fine."_

_"No, I'm not." Emily pulled away, gasping like the air was being sucked from her lungs. Her hand pressed to her stomach and came away covered in blood. She'd been shot._

_"Fuck! Hotch! Spence, Derek! Help! Please." JJ stood just in time to catch a collapsing Emily Prentiss and lower her to the ground gently. She grabbed a kitchen towel and pressed it to the wound, holding as much pressure as she could._

_"What's wrong, JJ?" Spencer asked casually as if Emily wasn't dying in her arms._

_"Spencer, call a medic. She's been shot, we need a medic. Shit, Em!" JJ managed._

_"JJ, this is how it was meant to happen." Spencer shrugged. JJ shook her head frantically, tears streaming down her face._

_"No! No, Spence, please! Help her!" JJ sobbed. Emily's eyes fluttered, threatening to close._

_"Jen, open the door." Emily murmured._

_"What? Em, stay with me, please. You're gonna be okay."_

_"No, she's not." Hotch laughed, shaking his head._

_"JJ, she's dying," Rossi added, patting Aaron's shoulder._

_"JJ, wake up!" Emily was shouting now, holding onto JJ's arm so tight her knuckles were white._

"No, Em! No!" JJ gasped, sitting up in bed. She was covered in a layer of sweat, hair in disarray. 

"Jesus, Jareau, you need your beauty sleep that bad?" Emily joked, knocking on the door again. Emily.

"You're okay!" JJ threw the door open and practically jumped into Emily's arms.

"Um...yeah?" Emily let out a soft laugh. "Let me in, I brought you coffee and breakfast." 

"Sorry, I just..." JJ pulled back, retreating into the hotel room. "Nightmare."

"I thought those stopped?" Emily frowned, kicking the door closed as she followed, placing a brown bag and two paper coffee cups on the table. One's lid was already stained with Emily's lipstick, and for a second, JJ wanted to take that cup and pretend she hadn't seen it, see if her lips really tasted like they had in her head. 

"Not those nightmares," JJ assured her. She'd been having nightmares about Tobias Hankel and that night in the barn since it happened, the night she almost died, the night Reid went missing. "Just a nightmare."

"You sure?" Emily studied JJ's disheveled appearance, her eyes filled with worry.

"I'm sure. It was stupid, nothing to do with any unsub." JJ was lying through her teeth. Emily had been kidnapped a year prior, barely made it out alive. Her dreams had been flashes of Emily's near death, of the night she lost her best friend ever since then, terrible events occasionally combining, twisting together to create nights that triggered a week without sleep, too much coffee for her own good, and drinking until she passed out, usually in Emily's arms.

"Okay. C'mon, eat so I can debrief you and we can go." Emily sunk into a hotel chair and dug out her own breakfast, passing the bag over.

"Debrief me?" 

"Escaped victim, Lily Dolan. She's in surgery, but she's looking really good. Just a long operation, and we get to talk to her."

"Em! You didn't say anything." JJ sighed, her hands stilling as her eyes met Emily's. Her heart sunk at the idea of interviewing a traumatized victim, one that would look like Emily, the Emily who haunted her sleep. The Emily who was so hurt, she couldn't move for weeks.

"Long operation. Besides, she's gotta wake up, and they probably have her doped up." Emily waved a hand dismissively, but JJ wasn't having it.

"Why wasn't I called? Em, we should be there!"

"JJ, Hotch called you three times. Spence and Morgan tried, too, but you were sleeping, so I was sent to feed, caffeinate, and brief you."

"Three times?" JJ grabbed her phone, shaking her head at the number of missed calls. She never slept through that many. "Morgan called four, Spence five, Rossi one. You didn't try?"

"You left early, crashed before I could get you for move night, and you were wiped yesterday. I did the math." 

"You came to get me? I waited." 

"I showered first, but I did. I used the extra key to get in, and you were out cold." Emily smiled at the memory, JJ wrapped in the hotel blanket, hugging an extra pillow and snoring softly, sandy hair splayed around her head like a halo.

"Oh. I really did want to watch a movie, but I was awake for two days straight, with the slight exception of a twenty-minute nap on the jet. I guess I didn't realize how tired I was." 

"I know. Seriously, eat. We have time, but not all day." Emily teased.

"Very funny." JJ teased, rolling her eyes as she unwrapped her breakfast. "Thanks for this. You didn't have to."

"I wanted to, you dork. I'm going to call Hotch and let him know you were asleep, I was right, and you didn't get kidnapped by a serial killer." Emily teased, picking up her phone with a smirk.


End file.
